Scoot confirms plans for mixed 787 fleet

Singapore Airlines’ long-haul, low-cost subsidiary Scoot will convert some of its orders for Boeing 787-9s to the smaller -8 variant.

The airline’s chief executive Campbell Wilson says that the airline has not determined an exact mix, but it is likely that it will change its order from 20 787-9s to 10 -9s and the same number of -8s.

“They’re operationally interchangeable so there’s no efficiency impact, but the different capacities open more options with respect to network and deployment,” he adds.

Wilson said last year that the airline was examining the -8 and the proposed -10 variants of the 787 for its fleet after it took over an order for 20 787-9s from parent company Singapore Airlines (SIA). Scoot is due to take delivery of its first 787-9 in late 2014.

The budget carrier operates a fleet of four ex-SIA Boeing 777-200ERs and flies to eight destinations including Sydney, Tokyo, Taipei and Tianjin.